Woodfire at Chapel Field

When you’ve a yen for the coast, sand-and-shingle West Quay Beach at Newhaven (20 minutes’ drive) is your closest swimming choice, while Saltdean (half an hour) is something of a hidden spot you may well have to yourselves. There is safe swimming at Cuckmere Haven (25 minutes) where the River Cuckmere meets the sea, and to stay closer to your pitch, Pells Pool is an outdoor lido in Lewes (15 minutes, summer only). Fancy some culturing? The site is half an hour’s stroll from Charleston – once home to boho artists Vanessa Bell and Duncan Grant – which has a programme of events and exhibitions throughout the summer. Stately Firle Place (20 minutes’ walk) has an amazing art collection in lavish apartments as well as carefully tended gardens to explore. Elizabethan-era Glynde Place (10 minutes’ drive) hosts ceramics exhibitions and classical concerts, while the opulent interiors and formal gardens at Herstmonceux Castle (25 minutes) are open for tours. Kids not into heritage? Friston Forest (15 minutes) has lots of gentle trails on which to tire little legs, and Arlington Reservoir (10 minutes) has flat paths around the lake – you might also get lucky and see the resident ospreys in flight.